The present disclosure relates generally to techniques for using medical sensors and, more particularly, to techniques for determining proper placement of medical sensors on a patient body location.
This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present disclosure, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
Medical sensors are used to obtain a variety of patient physiological parameters. For example, a properly applied photoplethysmographic sensor may provide such information as patient pulse rate, blood oxygen saturation, and/or total hemoglobin. When a medical sensor is improperly applied, however, data received from the medical sensor may not accurately reflect the state of the patient. Moreover, certain physiological measurements, such as pulse transit time or an electrocardiogram (ECG), may depend on knowledge of the body location where medical sensors are applied. If a sensor has been applied to an incorrect body location, calculated physiological measurements based on data from the sensor may also be incorrect.